A plane belonging to the "Emirates Airlines" company, owned by the Dubai government, landed today, Thursday, at Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv, marking the launch of daily flights between the two cities.
And Emirates Airlines published a tweet on its official page on Twitter, reading, “Landing .. We have officially arrived at our new destination, Tel Aviv.”
Flight EK931 carrying 335 passengers was greeted with a watercolor upon landing at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv.
The aircraft used on the inaugural flight is a Boeing 777 that includes the world's only fully enclosed First Class private suites, with virtual windows.
Touchdown.
We've officially landed in our newest destination, Tel Aviv.
pic.twitter.com/2ZgEnJVdVV
— Emirates Airline (@emirates) June 23, 2022
Emirates executives and Israeli media were on board the plane, which left Dubai at 12:20 local time.
Also on board was the UAE's ambassador to Israel, Mohammed Al Khaja, according to the Israeli "i24" website.
Al-Khaja wrote on Twitter, "I hope this new air route opens a new path of opportunities for our people, and strengthens relations between the two countries. Thank you Emirates Airlines for leading this path, and congratulations on your success."
The UAE and Israel formally normalized relations in 2020, and since that date the two sides have signed many agreements in various fields.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Prime Minister Naftali Bennett also visited Abu Dhabi, and Herzog announced that the volume of Tel Aviv's trade with Abu Dhabi amounts to more than one billion dollars.